Following the events of the same universe where Juliet Potter and Remus Lupin fell in love, the insouciance has faded into misery as all parties prepare for the war, willing to pull any card to win a war from which none will truly come out victoriou...
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August 9th, 1979
Hope Lupin was right. The second Juliet laid eyes on the small being she had birthed; all the pain seemed to have disappeared. It was a phenomenal sensation, and she never knew she could feel so much love for something.
Of course, she loved her brothers and best friends, and of course, she loved Remus with her whole soul. But this was a different type of love. The purest and most unconditional of them all.
Even bloodied and covered with vernix, she was so beautiful.
Remus stood in a daze. He had cut the cordon once it was clamped, and as Juliet held the baby, his eyes hadn't left his daughter. He watched his girlfriend smile through her tears and got teary-eyed himself.
He didn't even notice his mother had run out of the room, completely excited. But he followed Andromeda Tonks like a lost puppy when she took the baby from Juliet to dry her and cover her with a towel as Madam Pomfrey encouraged the young mother still had the placenta to deliver.
After the nine to ten long hours of labour, contractions, and unspeakable pain and soreness, the few minutes that followed the delivery seemed to pass in a flash.
The baby was back into her mother's loving arms, and she had stopped crying as if she recognised the touch.
There she was, the newborn born at 6 pounds, 9 ounces, healthy, from what Juliet heard from Poppy and Andromeda. They were checking vitals, cleaning everything, doing all that needed to be done, while the new parents sat and stared down at their baby that seemed to look back up at them.
"Can she see us?" Juliet whispered.
"Baby's visions are nearsighted, but you are close enough for her to see you." Poppy responded with a smile, throwing a bloodied towel away.
"Hi." Juliet cooed at the baby.
"Hi." Remus copied her, reaching to touch the baby's small nose with his trembling finger.
"I'm your mama." The young woman said, excitement evident in her tone and voice, her heart bursting with love.
"Baby, don't take this the wrong way, but I just fell in love." Remus whispered to his girlfriend.
"I'm not taking it the wrong way, I'd kill you for her." Juliet responded, both of them nodding in understanding.
Andromeda and Poppy, who were still in the room, stared at them, then shared a look. "We'll give you guys a few minutes."
When the women left the room, Juliet turned to her boyfriend. "Do you want to hold her?"
Remus stuttered, his whole body shaking. He was afraid to have something so delicate close to him.
"It's our daughter." Juliet encouraged.
Again, with trembling hands, he reached out and, with her help, positioned the baby in his arms, staring down at her still.
"Hi again."
"So small." Juliet muttered, allowing her daughter's tiny hand to wrap itself around her finger.
"I'm about to cry." Remus admitted.
"You're already crying."
~
Everyone downstairs was cheery, chatting joyfully about the child that was just born. They all quieted down a bit when they noticed Remus jumping down the stairs excitedly, getting immediately congratulated by his peers.
"I can't believe I'm an uncle." James chuckled through his tears.
"Yeah? I'm psyched to be an uncle." Sirius threw his fits in the air as if he had won a national game.
"Come on, everybody, let's go meet her." Remus told them, leading the group upstairs.
When they entered the room - well, not all of them. Some had to stand by the doorframe because there were too many of them. Anyway, they all were in awe at the tiny baby Juliet had cuddled in her arms.
"Blimey." James whispered, standing the closest to his sister and staring down at the child.
"Congratulations, she's beautiful." Daphne smiled softly, leaning against her boyfriend.
"How are you feeling?" Pandora asked Juliet as Poppy was checking her and the baby.
"Vitals are stable." Poppy declared.
"Vitals are stable." Juliet repeated in response to her best friend. "I'm sore, but I don't even care."
"I'm very happy I can't give birth to anything." Regulus muttered.
It seemed like they were all taking turns to approach the couple and stare down at their now sleeping baby.
"You know, she does look like Juliet." Amos stated.
"Who do you think gave birth to her, nitwit?" Lily raised an eyebrow.
"Really? I think she looks like Remus." Peter smiled.
"She was just born ten minutes ago, give her time to grow into her features." Juliet rolled her eyes at her friends.
"And, does she have a name?" Poppy turned to the new parents.
Juliet and Remus shared a look, the new father nodding at his girlfriend, signalling her to go ahead with the announcement.
"Everyone, meet Andromeda Hope Lupin." The young mother grinned, her eyes glued onto the two women she had named her baby after.
Andromeda gasped and covered her mouth, and Hope started to cry happy tears, hiding herself in her husband's arms.
"You named your baby after us?" Andromeda couldn't believe what she had just heard.
"You two saved my life in more than one way. This baby would not be here without you two. Thank you both for being the mother I no longer have." Juliet smiled at them.
Andromeda Tonks had saved her from her sister's claws and assured her health's stability, and Hope repeatedly procured her with motherly love and comfort that she missed.
"That's cute." Regulus commented.
"Wow, look at that, no snarky comment! What a miracle." Pandora teased.
"The miracle would be you shutting your mouth." Regulus snarled at his best friend.
"You're so salty."
"Remember when I asked for your opinion? Me neither." Regulus smiled sarcastically.
"You guys are ruining this." Amos scolded them.
Juliet didn't care. She stared down at her sleeping baby, thinking that this one was the real miracle. The love of her life.
* * *
I have no idea who's gonna be the godparent. It's gonna be a eeny meeny miny moe
